When Worlds Collide
by sassy lion
Summary: A unplanned trip to a commerce planet leaves Aeryn missing, and an old friend appears...along with an unexpected face... (I remodified the first 5 chapters so they are easier to read) Chapter 7 finally up after God knows how long! PLEASE R&R!
1. Different Worlds

  
**Title:** When Worlds Collide  
**Author:** sassy_lion   
**Summary:** Aeryn and John are having a wonderful weeken to themselves, when Aeryn goes missing and John finds a Peacekeeper plot that seems too unbelievable (somehow all my stories, as of late, get the PK treatment), only to get help from an unlikely source...  
Spoilers: A little more than 5 months after season 3. John and Aeryn are back together, as they should be!  
**Disclaimer:** Rockne owns the world. I just live and play in it, I really can't ask for more...to bring home a PK maybe?  
**Archiving:** If you want it, take it. Send me a note.  
**Beta:** Iris Green, Pinky (for what little you did), and of course who can forget: me! Oh, wait; I can't give myself credit, can I? Hmmm... Another question to ponder... I'll have to write this one down.  
**Feedback:** PLEASE. I need it! Compliments will be shined and placed in a display case. Flames will be used to blow new glass. (Yes, I know how to do it too!)  
**Author's Notes: 1)** I am person who HATES to do story outlines ahead of time. It just throws me off and makes me lose my concentration. **2)** I am a nocturnal, soon-to-be 18-year-old, so if you find a mistake (regarding space-time or just normal time) it just means I had to be up for at least part of the day. **3)** You'll find a couple of anime references in a lot of my stories. No anime belongs to me, and in a way I want to strangle Lizzy for giving me excuses to watch more and more TV every week. Most of my references will be Gundam Wing, Cowboy Bebop, or Outlaw Star, but there others.... **4)** To my betas: my computer is old, so forgive all the spelling mistakes. :*(  
**Shout-Outs:** The biggest thanks go to **Lizzy** (aka pinky) for endlessly listening to me bitch and complain about EVERYTHING from my works, your works, your spelling problems (quit complaining, you know I luv ya!), being broke, trying to get money for both conventions...Am I being to repetitive? * Sits in quiet contemplation for a whole minute * Why do you put up with me anyway? Thank you for also listening to me ramble about who I am going to kill...(you know its VSC :)) I can't forget** Amy** for being a nitpick and checking every little spelling and grammar mistake. Don't worry, there are more chapters to come…I also have to thank my brother **Tucker** for listening to PM5K thousands of times...over and over and over again. (Hence the title of the story) and the QOTD and Bride of Chucky soundtracks and not to mention my endless parade of Pink Floyd's Roger Waters Live From Berlin CDs. NOTE FOR YOU TUCKER: I will not name ANYTHING Yoshi!  
  
Okay now my babbling is completely done. (For this chapter at least)  
  
**When Worlds Collide  
Chapter 1: Different Worlds**  
  
© sassy_lion March/April 2002  
  


  
Lieutenant Commander Tara Crichton sat silently on the terrace of the Leviathan in her care, thinking about how she had actually ended up where she was-- a militaristic organization on the opposite end of the universe pretending to be who she wasn't. A Peacekeeper lieutenant named Risal L'San, a Sebecean in general. This was her life now, not like the peaceful one she had begun to lead not too long ago.  
  
_It has been 20 Earth years, since John went to this twisted and psychotic end of the universe...I wonder how he is holding up now. For him, it's only been about four cycles. It's strange how physics works its wonders when it comes to space travel. Imagine what Einstein would have did if he had known his Special Theory of Relativity actually worked, instead of just being theoretical. John doesn't even know about the terricolonies that IASA and NASA had started in his name a few years after he left all because of the theory he had predicted. It had actually worked. Tara brought her knees up and wrapped her arms around them._ Putting her chin on her knees, she continued to give her full attention to the stars above her. _All that data had helped us build the gates, to travel anywhere between the Milky Way, the Andromeda galaxy and the MS7 galaxy, to explore space like we always wanted to. Oh, John you would be amazed at what Humans had done in the last 21 years. _  
  
Remembering what life had been like after John had left and before the gates spawned another set of thoughts. She had only been 16 when John had disappeared. As soon as she could she had joined IASA and began working into what had happened. It was Tara, herself, who had helped get the Centinnal project funded for deep-space exploration missions.  
  
_Maybe not, maybe he's like me now. Being stuck out here for nearly two cycles on my own. Maybe he's seen his share of aliens and all he wants to do is somehow get back to Earth. Would he even want to go to Earth? Maybe he'd go with me to Centinnal, go to my colony. He would be more welcome there on Centinnal than any other colony, especially since I helped found it. He'd be able to see DK again. He'd be able to see Kayla again, if he wanted to. He's had that terrible grudge toward her, his own sister, ever since... no, I won't remember that. I don't want to. He'd see how much better the colonies are then our own pollution-covered, corporate-run Earth. Einstein's Special Theory won't affect the colonies perception of time as drastically as Earth does. The colonies are only about ten light years from this position. Earth is at least sixty, maybe seventy years at normal pace._  
  
The thought of John's grudge against Kayla brought up another point she had been thinking about seriously as of late. _There's all those rumors in First Command about John having an all-out grudge against Scorpius, destroying his carrier, destroying his Gammak base, killing thousands upon thousands of people...but are they really true? _  
  
Tara yawned and stared out of into the starry blackness that had become a part of her life, as she had to work to sustain her Peacekeeper ruse. It hadn't been very hard for her to keep up the masquerade as long as she had Torin around. He had helped her infiltration in the first place after she had saved his life on Cirroc IV. They had spent time together and he told her of his background as a Peacekeeper. In return she told him of her life on Earth, on Centinnal, and how she had come to be so far from her home.  
  
It had been Torin who had originally suggested that she have a solid background in a Sebecean house. It was then she had learned that John was still alive and that he had gained a dangerous reputation out in the Uncharted Territories.  
  
Before she began her ruse, he had taught her all the 'rules' of acting Sebecean-- like a Peacekeeper. He had then taught her all 750 articles of Peacekeeper Deca, customs, language, and more. It was like one of the well- worn castes she had been taught of in school. One track stayed in that track, each company stayed in similar ones, and regiments stuck together like family. They never took another track in the Peacekeepers unless they needed to. Command to command; tech to tech; pilot to pilot. Or lesser officers that never shift.  
  
_High Command has wanted beacons everywhere for anyone related to Crichton, that includes his shipmates. Always remember to protect yourself._ Torin's words rang through her head again as she remembered the night before the Prowler Detail had picked them up from the planet.  
  
He had helped her create a whole new identity inside the Peacekeepers domain, he had altered the genetics of her skin to allow her access to the command mainframes, he had made a ident chip for her, and had cleverly inserted her ruse into First Command's active duty rosters. He had given her an entire life to keep her safe.  
  
She didn't, couldn't admit to anyone that she actually had fallen in love with her beloved Torin. Not because she was going to be left again, as DK had left her for that floozy little blonde he was married to now, but because Peacekeepers didn't believe in life-long commitments or even emotional attachments. Besides she was now considered infantry and he was just a tech.  
  
"I see you are sitting here again, Lieutenant Commander." Captain Zahir Luca spoke softly as he sat down next to her. "You look at the stars too often." He smiled and placed his hand gently on her shoulder. It was just a gesture of comfort this time unlike it had been in the past.  
  
He was the only other person in all of the Peacekeepers who knew of her potentially deadly secret. He had found out after she had been transferred to his command. She had slipped while on duty, and he had called her on it. Instead of turning her over to High Command, though he only improved her ruse by accepting her completely into his command as his second and constantly protecting her along with her secret.  
  
She was thankful only a crew of 15 command posts and maybe 300 techs were ever on board at one time. It kept their secrets much more hidden than if she and Zahir were paired together on a Command carrier.  
  
There was only one other secret that had bonded the two together. They had been married at the last planet they had visited, the Sebecean way, by carving ornate bands of designs across their upper left arm, almost touching their shoulders, showing their commitment to each other. Not even the crew under their command knew. She wouldn't stand it if they knew; a vengeful or displeased crewmember would easily turn both of them in for a better position.  
  
"I look too often don't I?" She smiled and gently leaned her head on his shoulder. "I miss my home, my family, friends -- at this point I even miss work." She gave a dry chuckle. "But I couldn't give up my life out here now."  
  
"No, you look just enough." He pulled her into his arms and leaned down gently to kiss the woman he had fallen in love with in less than two cycles.  
  
"Zahir," she scolded and pulled away slightly. "Quarters! I don't think the crew would appreciate it if we started right here on the terrace." She smiled playfully as he led her to the now shared quarters, laughing most of the way. "And I certainly wouldn't want them to see..."  
  
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*  
  
John sat on the terrace of his own Leviathan home, Moya, watching the stars as well. His reasons were different though. John wasn't truly wishing for Earth now, he had accepted that his home was now on Moya with the others. His reason was instead the only woman he truly loved, Aeryn. They had just come back after another planet-side excursion. It was just another day where Aeryn had to rescue his sorry ass after an ambitious group of people tried to capture John, to turn him in for the ever-growing bounty on his head.  
  
_Damn the Peacekeepers,_ he thought as his mind involuntarily began to rifle through all the wear and tear he had gone through on the command carrier with Scorpius. He shook his head to clear his mind of the horrible images as the door to the terrace swung open gently and a set of soft footfalls started toward him. They stopped a microt later about ten feet behind him, but he already knew who it was.  
  
"John?" Aeryn's voice sounded softly behind him. He turned around to find her wearing just a pair of his Calvins and a large black T-shirt. It had only been about a monen earlier that Aeryn had begun showing signs that she was nearly halfway through her fifteen-monen pregnancy. As of the last three weekens, her belly was starting to grow a lot faster and she was having a slightly harder time doing things she normally did, like maintenance.  
  
"Yeah, baby?" He motioned for her to join him. As she did, he tucked her gently into his arms and she rested her head in the usual spot of the niche of his shoulder blade. He waited a moment for her to answer, but as he looked down at her face, he saw she was almost asleep.  
  
John nudged her gently and she opened her eyes. "Did you want to say something?"  
  
Aeryn shook her head and snuggled back into his arms. "I love you," she whispered.  
  
"I love you, too." He brought her closer as she fell back into a light sleep from all the stress that had accumulated over the last few weekens since she had learned of her pregnancy.  
  
He wondered how long she would actually sleep this time. Ever since she had learned of the pregnancy, her sleeping patterns had gone erratic. One minute she could be wide-awake and the next she could be fast asleep. She would sleep most of the day and stay awake all night. And she always tended to be in John's arm when she fell asleep.  
  
"Commander." Pilot's voice quietly filtered through the comms. "I have been alerted that we are low on supplies. I have located a commerce planet nearby."  
  
"It's been nearly three weekens since we picked up food. How far away is the planet?"  
  
"27 arns."  
  
"Let's go, but be on the lookout for Peacekeepers. Aeryn mentioned something about being near Peacekeeper space."  
  
"Understood, Commander."  
  
After another arn of watching the stars, John nudged Aeryn gently and whispered, "Aeryn, baby..."  
  
Aeryn lazily opened her eyes, already knowing what he was about to say, "I can't move," she whispered back. She was actually telling the truth. Between the last arns on the terrace, the position her ever-growing belly was in, and the warmth of John against her, she was so completely comfortable she couldn't move if she wanted to, and she didn't.  
  
"I know you're comfortable, but we have to get you to bed. You'll be more comfortable there."  
  
"No," she yawned slightly, "I'm fine here, John." she whispered as she began to fall asleep again, knowing John would become frustrated and shift himself to pick her up and carry her to their shared quarters. "And don't pick me up. I hate when you do that."  
  
But as she knew John would, about 30 microts later, he did exactly that, but unlike all the other times, Aeryn continued to stay sleeping.  
  
John carried her to their respective quarters and shook her awake again, only long enough to get her comfortably settled into bed. He stripped and joined her in bed. Aeryn immediately rolled over and pressed against him as well as she could despite her ever-growing form, placing her head on his shoulder, one hand across his chest, and her right leg between his thighs. She had already fallen asleep and John knew this was how she preferred to sleep, giving both her and the baby enough room to be comfortable.  
  
He put his hand against her face for a microt, enjoying the moment of watching her sleep. Then his hand gravitated toward her hair and he began to stroke it lightly. A few microts later, he fell asleep as well.  
  
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*  
  
Okay that is the end of this chapter. That makes 7 pages (according to my computer...I think it turns out to be about 4/5, maybe 6 here) for the night. It is now official 1 am and I actually have to get up by noon tomorrow, so this is where I am calling it quits for tonight. Besides Rusty (my computer- he's a hunk of junk) is getting tired too. Note: Because I DID make a draft sheet (OH MY GOD!) for "Nothing" and it got tossed by my 4- year-old brother, I am taking the story down until I can write a new draft for it. (I know I said I hate drafts, but that story is too complex for off- the-wall writing. I let everyone know when I have the draft done for it if interested. Just for now, place your comments in the small box below, or I'll have to send you an insulting e-mail completely in Japanese! (I can do it too! LOL)  
  
At this point I am pausing for 7-10 minutes at a time to watch my screen saver as I fly through space. *Yawns* Oh God, I think I'm going to die of sleep deprivation. (I haven't slept since Thursday!)  
  
Good night now...zzzzzzzzzzzz... I'll start chapter 2 tomorrow. I hope. I wish.


	2. The Search Continues

**Title:** When Worlds Collide  
**Author:** sassy_lion  
**Summary:** Aeryn and John are having a wonderful weeken to themselves, when Aeryn goes missing and John finds a Peacekeeper plot that seems too unbelievable (somehow all my stories, as of late, get the PK treatment), only to get help from an unlikely source...  
**Spoilers:** A little more than 5 months after season 3. John and Aeryn are back together, as they should be!  
**Disclaimer:** Rockne owns the world. I just live and play in it, I really can't ask for more...  
**Archiving:** If you want it, take it. Send me a note.  
**Beta:** Iris Green, Pinky (for what little you did), and of course who can forget: me! Oh, wait; I can't give myself credit, can I? Hmmm.... Another question to ponder... I'll have to write this one down.  
**Feedback:** PLEASE! I need it! Compliments will be shined and placed in a display case. Flames will be used to blow new glass. (Yes, I know how to do it too!)  
**Author's Notes: 1)** I am person who HATES to do story outlines ahead of time. It just throws me off and makes me lose my concentration. **2)** I am a nocturnal, soon-to-be 18-year-old, so if you find a mistake (regarding space-time or just normal time) it just means I had to be up for at least part of the day. **3)** You'll find a couple of anime references in a lot of my stories. No anime belongs to me, and in a way I want to strangle Lizzy for giving me excuses to watch more and more TV every week. Most of my references will be Gundam Wing, Cowboy Bebop, or Outlaw Star, but there others.... **Dogma references, don't belong to me either. **  
**Shout-Outs:** The biggest thanks go to **Lizzy** (aka pinky) for endlessly listening to me bitch and moan about EVERYTHING from my works, your works, your spelling problems (quit complaining, you know I luv ya!), being broke, and trying to borrow all your stuff one at a time to try and copy (but it doesn't work that well I guess). Why do you put up with me anyway? Thank you for also listening to me mention who I am going to kill...(you know its Holly :)) **SOS! The Wrath of Happosi** Can you buy that??? *Grins like Edward* **Amy** for being a nit-pick and noticing EVERY spelling and grammar error in this vapid little excuse to get away from my loud and crowding family life. I don't think I could ever get this story up without the help. **Dad** for giving me a whole pound of Twizzlers, Pop Tarts, jelly beans, creme savers and all the chocolate my little tummy can hold to much on during this chapter's workings. **Mom** for spending all of Spring Break watching all the episodes in succession with me about 20x in a row, and **Tucker** for listening to the QOTD soundtrack all this time...  
  
Okay now my babbling is done. (For this chapter at least)  
  
**When Worlds Collide  
Chapter 2: The Search Continues  
**  
© sassy_lion March/April 2002  
  


  
"Hmm." Tara rolled over and laid next to Zahir, spent from their love- making. But she quickly changed her mind, rolling over again and laying her head back on his chest, and wrapping her arms around his neck. "How long until our shift starts?"  
  
"About 12 arns." Zahir smiled as he began to trace the intricate marriage tattoo across her upper arm, as he always did when they were alone.  
  
"How long until we can get off Loki?" she sighed as she closed her eyes and listened to the sounds of the great Leviathan around her for a microt.  
  
"At the next planet." he whispered softly into her ear, "Then we can get off this Leviathan and spend some time down on the planet. Together and alone."  
  
"That is a complete oxymoron, but I know what you mean..." she brought him down to her and captured his lips in hers.  
  
"Captain..." the hesitant hail came at the worst time possible as Tara groaned as laid her head on the soft pillows next to Zahir.  
  
"Yes, Lieutenant Terga?" He snarled as if he had been woken up from sleep.  
  
"I am sorry to bother you, but we have just received the signal of a Leviathan about 6 light- cycles away. Shall I set a course to pursue?" Her voice had a slight hesitant nature for only a microt before she hid it.  
  
"Have you identified the Leviathan?"  
  
"No. We are not close enough to confirm identity, but if we get within 2 light-cycles, we will have conformation. That is what the Pilot informs me of."  
  
"Pursue until we find a well-stocked commerce planet. We are running low on supplies and First Command will not send stock ships into the Uncharted Territories. It will give away the location of our ship. We do not need to let others know that we Peacekeepers have discovered a way to control Leviathans without the use of control collars, thanks to NewTech divisions."  
  
"Understood, Captain."  
  
"And we certainly don't need High Command knowing we work for the Resistance," Tara commented as soon as she was sure the comms were closed. She once again brought her head back to his chest. "It would be bad for our reputation." She began to close her eyes and fall asleep. "Besides we still have our Command mission to find Moya and my brother."  
  
Zahir smiled and softly spoke, "We would be executed on sight. We still have a loyal command crew. Don't forget that. If they learn we are Resistance, they will not hesitate to kill us." He began to trace the tattoo again as he felt her grow heavy against his chest. _Sleep, my love. We will have a long day ahead of us once we find Moya._  
  
He felt Loki shift into Starburst as he began to allow his mind to wander to thoughts about how his life had become so twisted. He remembered the day he first met the now Risal L'San.  
  
**FLASHBACK**  
  
He had entered the cargo bay to find her climbing out of her Prowler. As soon as she had seen him, she immediately stood at attention until he had fully inspected her and called at ease, and asked her name.  
  
"Lieutenant Risal L'San, sir."  
  
"Where were you assigned to before?"  
  
"New Tech, New-Star Division, Ravstar Regiment. Command post."  
  
Zahir stared at her intensely as he dismissed her and had her follow a tech to her assigned quarters. He actually couldn't take his eyes off her after the first time he had seen her.  
  
About two weekens later was when she had accidentally slipped up. He had her on watch on Command when a passing Sheyang ship had attacked Loki, looking to loot any Peacekeeper Leviathan it came across.  
  
She had been in his quarters suggesting tactics when she had mentioned a strange saying from her world and he had asked her about it. After she tried to explain, he had realized she wasn't really Peacekeeper, wasn't even Sebecean, and he had let her go without question to allow her to help with the situation.  
  
After the crisis was solved, he had invited her into his quarters and asked her about earlier. She had bowed her head and admitted that she wasn't really Peacekeeper or even Sebecean for that matter; she was just trying to get by without getting herself killed. She explained about her brother, and how she had gotten permission from both IASA and Centinnal to go looking for him.  
  
He had sympathized with her and agreed to help her keep her secret. A few solar days later, he announced to the whole crew that he was making Lieutenant Risal L'San his new second-in-command.  
  
**FLASHBACK ENDED**  
  
He looked down at the woman he was now married to. It was not something he had planned in his youthful days; in fact it was something he had never planned at all. Marriage was never heard of in Peacekeeper ranks -- marriage, especially not to a non-Sebecean merely pretending to be a Peacekeeper. High Command would have executed Zahir on the spot if they knew that he had married – since she was non-Sebecean and a being a close family member to one of High Command's most well-know fugitives.  
  
Zahir felt Tara pull closer to him and fully relax, something she only did when she was in a deep and peaceful sleep. He sighed and carefully pulled himself from her embrace. Pulling on a pair of pants and a black shirt, Zahir headed off to Command.  
  
He entered Command to find Lieutenant Terga looking at the accumulating information from her console. "Anything yet, Lieutenant?"  
  
"Sir, there is a Command carrier on approach to the same marker we are headed to. The Leviathan seems to be in their target sight as well. Shall I contact the carrier and...."  
  
"No," he interrupted, "Leave the carrier alone. We do not need other complication in our pursuit. Keep our course steady and inform me if the carrier contacts this Leviathan."  
  
"Yes, sir."  
  
Zahir nodded and stepped out of Command. He paused a moment at the door and looked back at the stars. He smiled for a microt and headed back for his and Tara's quarters for some well-deserved sleep with Tara at his side.  
  
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*  
  
"Commander Crichton," Pilot's voice ventured softly into the silent quarters. "Commander Crichton."  
  
John became immediately aware at Pilot's second call. He turned to make sure Aeryn was still asleep. Satisfied that she was, he responded, "What is it, Pilot?"  
  
"Moya's deep range scans have revealed a Peacekeeper Command Carrier one light-cycle from our current location. It has located us and has turned on an intercept vector."  
  
"Can we Starburst?" John asked as he climbed from the bed and pulled on a pair of pants and a shirt, heading off for Command and knowing full well that Aeryn needed to stay in bed.  
  
"No, Commander. Moya will not be able to replenish her energy reserves in time. I estimate that the Command Carrier will be in range 600 microts before Moya will be able to Starburst." he spoke as John entered Command. "Moya has found a small planet nearby. She has voiced to me her concerns for yours and Aeryn's impending child. Moya is willing to prepare a transport. You will be able to take it to the planet and Moya is willing to draw the carrier away from the planet's position."  
  
"Pilot, we could never abandon Moya..." John began before Pilot interrupted.  
  
"Moya wishes for you to be safe and she knows that here aboard her right now, it is not. Please, she wishes for you to do as she asks. As soon as we draw the carrier away from our position, we will come back and retrieve you."  
  
John paused for a full minute before looking back up at Pilot, "Please, Pilot, thank Moya for me, for us." He smiled and raced out of Command towards his and Aeryn's quarters.  
  
He entered and quickly shook her awake. "Come on, baby, we have a Peacekeeper carrier tailing our ass. You need to wake up."  
  
"How do you know it is after us?" _Oh, dumb question. Everyone is always after us._  
  
"It changed to an interception vector once it realized we were here. Pilot is prepping a pod, we have to go."  
  
"No, I will not abandon Moya willingly."  
  
"Neither will I, but..."  
  
"It was Moya's idea." Pilot interrupted as Aeryn climbed slowly out of the bed and into her clothes. "She feels that you, Commander Crichton and the baby should be safe from the Peacekeepers. She will not be able to get away from the carrier in time. The transport pod she requested you be on will be ready in 90 microts."  
  
Aeryn felt torn. She would never willingly abandon Moya, but Moya wanted her and John to go and be safe from the Peacekeepers. She moved quickly to the other side of their room and pulled out her black duffel bag. There would be no possibility of masquerading as Peacekeepers again now that John's face was universally known.  
  
"John..." Aeryn sighed.  
  
He turned and looked at her. Seeing the confusion on her face, John quickly brought her into his embrace, "Moya can come back for us after she lures the carrier away. We'll be safe because Moya wants us to be. Come on, we should go."  
  
  
  
The transport pod left Moya a few minutes later with Aeryn and Crichton on board.  
  
"Pilot," John spoke up as they exited the hangar bay.  
  
"Moya has agreed to draw the command carrier away from this position and come back when she feels it is safe to do so."  
  
"Tell her we will be waiting." Aeryn climbed into the co-pilot's seat and leaned her head against the side of the chair, closing her eyes.  
  
"Yes, I will. Good luck." Pilot spoke softly.  
  
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*  
  
Oh Nixar (TtS), this was a long chapter! (Although I think it is about the same length as Ch 1, it just seemed to take longer this time. Hmmm....maybe it's just Rusty. He's been bugged b/c I haven't been home for a whole week.)  
  
I'll get to work on Ch. 3 as soon as possible, but I think I am going to take a few days off from this and work on episode transcripts for my site + I gotta work on my half of the anime site I am working on with Liz & Holly. I gotta put up my bishies!!!!  
  
"You survived!"  
  
"Hey, don't I always?"  
  
~ Chiana to John in "MIND THE BABY"


	3. Operation Search and Seizure

**Title:** When Worlds Collide  
**Author:** sassy_lion   
**Summary:** Aeryn and John are having a wonderful weeken to themselves, when Aeryn goes missing and John finds a Peacekeeper plot that seems too unbelievable (somehow all my stories, as of late, get the PK treatment), only to get help from an unlikely source...  
**Spoilers:** A little more than 5 months after season 3. John and Aeryn are back together, as they should be!  
**Disclaimer:** Rockne owns the world. I just live and play in it, I really can't ask for more...  
**Archiving:** If you want it, take it. Send me a note.  
**Beta:** Iris Green, Pinky (for what little you did), and of course who can forget: me!...Oh, wait, I can't give myself credit, can I? Hmmm... Another question to ponder... I'll have to write this one down.  
**Feedback:** PLEASE. I need it! Compliments will be shined and placed in a display case. Flames will be used to blow new glass. (yes, I know how to do it too!)  
**Author's Notes: 1)** I am person who HATES to do story outlines ahead of time. It just throws me off and makes me lose my concentration. **2)** I am a nocturnal, soon-to-be 18-year-old, so if you find a mistake (regarding space-time or just normal time) it just means I had to be up for at least part of the day. **3)** You'll find a couple of anime references in a lot of my stories. No anime belongs to me, and in a way I want to strangle Lizzy for giving me excuses to watch more and more TV every week. Most of my references will be Gundam Wing, Cowboy Bebop, or Outlaw Star, but there others.... **Dogma reference, that doesn't belong to me either.  
**Shout-Outs:** The biggest thanks go to **Lizzy** (aka pinky), for endlessly listening to me bitch and moan about EVERYTHING from my works, your works, your spelling problems (quit complaining, you know I luv ya!), being broke, and trying to borrow all your stuff one at a time to try and copy (but it doesn't work that well I guess). Why do you put up with me anyway? Thank you for also listening to me mention who I am going to kill...(you know its Holly :) ) **SOS! The Wrath of Happosi** Can you buy that??? *grins like Edward* **Amy**, for being a nit-pick and noticing EVERY spelling and grammar error in this vapid little excuse to get away from my loud and crowding family life. I don't think I could ever get this story up without the help. **Dad**, for giving me a whole pound of Twizzlers, Pop Tarts, jelly beans, creme savers and all the chocolate my little tummy can hold to much on during this chapter's workings, **Mom**, for watching all the episodes in succession with me about 20x in a row. And **Tucker**, for listening to the QOTD soundtrack all this time...  
  
Okay now my babbling is done. (for this chapter at least)  
  
**When Worlds Collide  
Chapter 3: Operation Search and Seizure**  
  
© sassy_lion May 2002  
  


  
Tara immediately became alert as she sensed Zahir crawling back into their warm bed lined with quellidyr fur. "Hmm. I was beginning to wonder where you had gone," she mumbled as she pulled close to him comfortably. "This bed was getting a little lonely. Where did you go anyway?"  
  
"I just went to check our status on Command." He pulled her as close as he could, reveling in the warmth that her body released. "There is a Command carrier heading for the same point we are."  
  
"Is it Scorpius? Do you think it is possible he escaped from the carrier my brother destroyed?" she asked sleepily, but alarmed, "If he did, and he is on that carrier, we will have a major problem. I heard that he can sense what species a person is just by looking at them. He'll know I'm not Sebacean, and then he'll kill us both."  
  
"I won't allow him to get anywhere near you." Zahir promised. "I told Lieutenant Terga not to initiate communications with the carrier at any cost. We will contact them when we are ready to confront them. If they contact us, we will both be notified immediately."  
  
"Good." she tucked her head under his chin and fell asleep soundly as thousands of listless thoughts ran rampant through her head.  
  
*-*-*-*-*  
  
Tara was sitting on the warm deck once again. It had been a three solar days since they had located the Leviathan they had thought was Moya, but as they closed in for identification, the Leviathan had become spooked by the approaching command carrier and Starburst away to safety  
  
. Zahir and others had gone down to the planet to gather supplies that would be needed. Tara had wanted to go, but she was to stay aboard Loki and learn of the Fleet Captain's background.  
  
So in fact, she had. Tara had spent the last few solar days in comm silence, side-by-side the command carrier. Keeping to her word, she had not initiated communications yet. The comms had been deathly silent, except for the Fleet Captain announcing his name, registration, and assignment to the small command crew aboard Loki. In return, before he left for the planet, Zahir had done the same and asked if it was possible for them to accompany the carrier back to Peacekeeper occupied territory once the commerce run had finished. Fleet Captain Chatto had granted the request and both stayed in orbit around P'Masa until both were ready to go.  
  
Tara had kept comm silence, as ordered and spent the three solar days already on orbit asking Pilot to help her tap into the high-level Peacekeeper comm channels, which allowed her access to certain restricted files in the central database. Captain Brantam Chatto's files, specifically. _Clean. No unexplained gaps in his service record, no disseverance of duties. Excellent service. Why do I feel like I am missing something here?_  
  
From her lessons with Torin she had learned of the prominent Sebacean houses, all 26 of them, and Chatto House was one of the highest. The Chatto House had at least four members on the high council and it the was known that Loamti Chatto's children were Brantam- who she wanted, at first, to strangle for the escape of the Leviathan; and Jenavian- one of the highest disruptors in Special Directorate.  
  
Tara had learned from encrypted resistance information, that one of Jenavian's last assignments had been to watch the Royal colonies; to make sure the Scarrens didn't get a foothold there. She had reported that John had been on the colony, and in order to complete her mission, she had been "forced" to rescue him from the Scarrens.  
  
_Thank God it wasn't Scorpius that Jenavian had to save him from._ The records back at Command headquarters indicated exactly what Tara had heard about Scorpius. He could sense energy signatures, lies, and every once in a while he could control someone's mind. Scarren traits.  
  
"Lieutenant Commander, Fleet Captain Chatto would like to speak to you privately."  
  
Tara sighed. _The first round of interrogation…_ she mused as she trudged off to command softly, wishing that Zahir hadn't reached a comms station on the planet and ordered her to initiate communications at Captain Chatto's request. She would have been much happier keeping comms silence.  
  
"Lieutenant Commander Risal L'San," Captain Chatto addressed her formally. "I have been researching your background in the solar days of communications silence. You have a wonderful service record."  
  
"Fleet Captain Chatto," she addressed him in attention stance, a small smile playing at her lips, "I have been doing the same and I have to say the same of you."  
  
"I have tried reaching your captain down on the planet, but it appears the heavy cloud layers block communications channels."  
  
"Captain Luca has given me full command of this Leviathan until he gets back. If there is a problem, I would be the one to talk to, for now." _Until my husband gets back…_ She didn't say that out loud though; that would have been 315 deaths for a simple slip of the tongue. She was better than that.  
  
"We have received word that the Leviathan sighted in this system as we both approached was named Moya."  
  
Tara sighed angrily. "Our prey. The mission given to us by First Command, as you may know, is to help capture the Leviathan Moya and her prisoners. It has been reported that Leviathans are much more efficient."  
  
"Spoken like a true New Tech commander," he said softly.  
  
"Yes. New Tech has been working with Leviathan technology for years, but both my captain and I are upset that you allowed the Leviathan to escape. After Scorpius's command carrier was destroyed we were assigned to track Moya and bring her back to First Command, along with her crew. Under a Leviathan it may be more discrete and therefore we would be more successful."  
  
Captain Chatto snorted softly and nodded. "I have been given the same information. Though as your assignment is to capture Moya, my and my crew's assignment has been given to search for the Leviathan Moya's offspring Talyn, along with his crew of Officer Sun and Captain Crais. It is possible that he escaped the command carrier and survived. He is after all part gunship."  
  
Tara nodded. "I suspected as much. Even though Starburst in a confined space, like the hangar of a command carrier would kill a normal Leviathan, he is, as you said, part warship. Therefore, he would have much tougher shielding and not be as affected."  
  
"Yes. That is what High Command has predicted. I have decided that, in the best interest, we should stay together until we have captured both Moya and her offspring."  
  
"Captain Chatto, your command carrier would cause unneeded..." she began, but Chatto nodded once and the communication was broken, "...attention. Damn. It's easier to talk a starving person out of his only food than explain stuff to that guy." she growled softly to herself and stalked out of command. _He's hiding something, but what?_  
  
"Lieutenant Commander," Zahir's voice rang richly through the small comms badge as she shut the door to their quarters and pulled the privacy curtain. She smiled slightly as she activated her comms.  
  
"Yes, sir," she replied stiffly knowing that he was probably not alone.  
  
"You can stop that. I'm alone."  
  
"Yes, Hun," she teased, "you rang?"  
  
"Risal, what did I tell you about using those colloquialisms with me?"  
  
"Sorry, I was just teasing." She gave a small laugh as she noticed his use of her Sebacean name. "What's going on?"  
  
"As soon as the pod returns to Loki, I would like you personally to bring it back down for another load of supplies. Bring four crewmembers with you. Clear?"  
  
"Yes, sir." She mock saluted her comms badge as he terminated the comms circuit.  
  
"Pilot," she called softly, "Is the pod going to be here soon?"  
  
"It just left the surface, Lieutenant Commander," her voice filtered through the comms. "I estimate the time of arrival to be... 6000 microts."  
  
"Thank you, Pilot."  
  
_Why does he want me to go down there myself?_ she wondered as she holstered her pulse pistol to her thigh and went to meet the arriving transport pod.  
  
As soon as the pod was unloaded, she called upon three trustworthy Officers and a tech to accompany her to the surface.  
  
As she stepped out, a large ground vehicle approached filled with provisions.  
  
"Begin to put those all in the transport pod." Zahir commanded the work force of techs. He turned to the officers, "We have received word that a Leviathan pod was sighted heading down into the bonosphere of this planet. I want all of you to start searching the city. Search pattern Omega." Zahir watched as he began to move toward the inner city.  
  
"Now, as our crew searches the outsides of the city, or packs our transport pod, we will search the inner city and keep the two of them safe, as resistance leaders..." he smiled and grabbed her hand pulling her through the open market place. "Tara, Risal," he corrected himself, "if it is your brother, you must not let him know anything. Not even that you are his own dear sister. From this point on, you will only answer to your given Sebacean name. Understood?"  
  
She nodded vehemently. "I can't give up our position of both Resistance and Peacekeeper Command. If he figures it out though, I will tell him the truth."  
  
"No, until we are positive he is absolutely safe, you must not tell him anything. If he is captured by Commandant Grayza, or perhaps even Scorpius, the council will allow whomever it is to use every means necessary to extract information from him. No matter how severe. If he learns who you truly are, then he learns. Do not tell him anything of great importance."  
  
"What about if it is the others?"  
  
"The same. We cannot be 100% sure they will not betray us in any way. The only ones we can fully trust are Moya's Pilot and Aeryn Sun."  
  
She nodded once again and they both slipped quietly through the commerce square, watching, waiting and searching.  
  
*-*-*-*-*  
  
John and Aeryn were searching the small marketplace when they saw a Leviathan pod landing outside of the square.  
  
"Do you think it is one of Moya's?"  
  
"Pilot would have contacted us before he would send a pod down to collect us. Besides it has only been three solar days. If Moya starburst out of this system, it would take her nearly this long to travel back to our location if Pilot got all the Starburst points correctly aligned." Aeryn pulled the hood of her cloak up as she noticed Officers exit the pod with a Lieutenant Commander.  
  
Following her lead, John did the same and the two of them went back to investigating the market stalls. He noticed four officers heading in their direction. They quickly passed and John breathed a small sigh of relief. "Come on," he whispered as he tugged softly on her hand and started to lead her away from the growing number of Peacekeepers scouring the marketplace.  
  
As they approached the center of the town, toward the room at the inn they had bartered for, that was when all hezmana broke loose.  
  
Two Peacekeeper officers began to search the square and noticed the pair crossing the square rather quickly. Both the Officers pulled their pistols and started to shoot at John and Aeryn as they both dived behind the small fountain in the middle of the square. They both grabbed their weapons from under the cloaks and began to shoot at the two officers, bringing them down quickly.  
  
But soon more took their place. As more Peacekeepers moved to surround them, John noticed that Aeryn was not in his sight anymore.  
  
"Aeryn?"  
  
He turned around slowly and noticed Aeryn being dragged off by two Peacekeepers and that they were nearly half way across the square already.  
  
"Aeryn!" he yelled as he took one step in her direction and found eight pulse pistols pointed directly at his head. He dropped his pistol and held up his hands in a sign of surrender. An officer slipped a pair of restraints on his hands and stepped back.  
  
"Good work, Officers," a male voice sounded behind him. "Leave him with me and Lieutenant Commander L'San."  
  
The officers nodded and began to back away. Five took off toward the transport pods and two stepped to the edges of the square, their weapons still pointed at John in case he would try and escape.  
  
"What the frell did you assholes do with Aeryn?" John yelled as he tried to break free of the restraints.  
  
"My men did not capture her, or else she would have been kept here as well," Tara spoke up in her Sebacean laced accent. "It could have been a number of others. After Moya was sighted in this system, Captain Chatto contacted a number of command carriers, including Commandant Grayza's."  
  
"You called them yourself, Peacekeeper bitch!" He rushed forward to attack her, but was quickly stopped by Tara herself as she pushed him backward. "Be wary, John Crichton, I do not need to keep you alive. You are just as valuable to High Command dead." She leaned in even more and unnoticed, even to John, she slipped her ident chip past the restraints. She lowered her voice so low, even John had a hard time hearing her, "I swear to you, my guards did not capture her. Even if you don't believe me, you should continue to play this deception until we get safely aboard the Leviathan. There I can explain everything."  
  
"Why," he whispered back, "Why would you do this for me?"  
  
"I have my reasons." she whispered as she pocketed her ident chip and grabbed Crichton by the cuffs, keeping them tight enough for everyone to believe that they were still secure, but loose enough for him to easily slip out of. She pretended to check the restraints once again before pretending to be satisfied.  
  
_He hasn't recognized me yet. That's good, the longer I can hide that from him, the longer everyone can stay safe. But who took Aeryn? Captain Chatto's men? Maybe. The Commandant? Easily enough, to get John back in her custody. Scorpius. Absolutely, everyone knows of the grudge between the two._  
  
"I know Chatto, she would..." John whispered softly.  
  
"It's not Jenavian," Tara whispered back. "Just shut up and on my mark, take off toward the opposite end of the square where the guards aren't patrolling. If you do as I ask, I'll explain anything to you."  
  
"Like who you really are?"  
  
"Just go on my mark." She turned around and started to loosely drag John behind her. "Everyone, back to the transport pod," she yelled to the guards. As soon as the guards were out of the square and a few metras ahead of the three, she quietly spoke. "Dive out of sight," she handed him a small disc with a name printed on it in Sebacean and a key. "Meet me there in an arn. The key is for the door. Go, now."  
  
John broke loose from Tara's grasp and began to run. "Guards!" she yelled as she stood there for a moment, letting John get partially to safety. "Guards!" she called again as they came back into view.  
  
"The Human has broken loose." Zahir looked at the group and noticed a trusted resistance officer standing among them that he and Tara had recruited no more than a monen ago. "Officer Trilan, come with me. The rest of you, report back to the Leviathan. Senior Officer Rirad, you have control for the moment. If it is possible, find out whoever is responsible for taking Officer Sun. She is part of our assignment and our capture. Dismissed."  
  
All the guards headed off to the Leviathan transport, leaving Zahir, Tara, and Bishall Trilan in the center of the square.  
  
Tara dropped her Peacekeeper face and spoke up, "Zahir, Captain Chatto has orders to capture Officer Sun too."  
  
"What do we do now?" Bishall spoke up. "The Resistance cannot possibly continue the mission unless Crichton and Officer Sun are free and willing to cooperate with us. At the moment, we have neither of them."  
  
"I gave John a disc with the instruction to meet us in an abandoned building just outside the city limits in one arn. He'll be there."  
  
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*- *-*-  
  
I know this chapter stops very suddenly, but I (OMG) have to write a partial outline for the next chapter b/c I have four stories going at this time, and I am swamped with chemistry homework (gas laws. for those who have taken chem or are just learning it: Boyle's Law, Charles Law, Avagadro's Law and the combined gas laws. What FUN!)  
  
Okay, this kind of a strange chapter b/c here I am in bed, typing on Rusty, and watching Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace and trying to do chem work. This apparently wasn't too good of a combination. SO sorry for the weirdness factor, or maybe it is better for me to be doing four things at once, b/c HEY my chapter is longer! :)  
  
"Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering." -Yoda  
  
Nixar, this chapter was longer than the others I know... but I hope you liked it. This time I am putting a limit on how many reviews I get. So far this is Ch. 3 and I only have about 6 reviews! How sad...  
  
I really don't want to do this, but until I get at least 15 reviews, I am not posting another chapter. I really want to know what people think. I know there are those out there that read every story and just go "That was good, but I am not going to review..." I know, b/c (ashamedly) I used to be one of those people in the beginning. (Besides, the more reviews, the faster the next chapter will go up.)  
  
For reviews, it's not like it has to be an essay. Just spend a minute and type what you think. It isn't that hard. BE RESPONSIBLE!!!!  
  
May the Force be with you.


	4. The New Ally and the Unknown Variable

**Title:** When Worlds Collide  
**Author:** sassy_lion   
**Summary:** Aeryn and John are having a wonderful weeken to themselves, when Aeryn goes missing and John finds a Peacekeeper plot that seems too unbelievable (somehow all my stories, as of late, get the PK treatment), only to get help from an unlikely source...  
**Spoilers:** A little more than 5 months after season 3. John and Aeryn are back together, as they should be!  
**Disclaimer:** Rockne owns the world. I just live and play in it, I really can't ask for more...  
**Archiving:** If you want it, take it. Send me a note.  
**Beta:** Iris Green, Pinky (for what little you did), and of course who can forget: me! Oh, wait; I can't give myself credit, can I? Hmmm... Another question to ponder... I'll have to write this one down.  
**Feedback:** PLEASE. I need it! Compliments will be shined and placed in a display case. Flames will be used to blow new glass. (Yes, I know how to do it too!)  
**Author's Notes: 1)** I am person who HATES to do story outlines ahead of time. It just throws me off and makes me lose my concentration. **2)** I am a nocturnal, soon-to-be 18-year-old, so if you find a mistake (regarding space-time or just normal time) it just means I had to be up for at least part of the day. **3)** You'll find a couple of anime references in a lot of my stories. No anime belongs to me, and in a way I want to strangle Lizzy for giving me excuses to watch more and more TV every week. Most of my references will be Gundam Wing, Cowboy Bebop, or Outlaw Star, but there others.... **Dogma reference: that doesn't belong to me either.** **4)** To everyone: I am working on about four stories at once, so please forgive me if I don't post as frequently as I usually have been. I hope you guys enjoy!  
**Shout-Outs:** The biggest thanks go to **Lizzy** (aka pinky) for endlessly listening to me bitch and moan about EVERYTHING from my works, your works, your spelling problems (quit complaining, you know I luv ya!), being broke, and trying to borrow all your stuff one at a time to try and copy (but it doesn't work that well I guess). Why do you put up with me anyway? Thank you for also listening to me mention who I am going to kill...(you know its Holly :) I'm gonna have to stop teasing you about the spelling aren't I? **Amy** for being a nit-pick and noticing EVERY spelling and grammar error in this vapid little excuse to get away from my loud and crowding family life. I don't think I could ever get this story up without the help, and NO, I don't think you are too much of a nitpick. You nitpick just enough. **Chi** for reviewing after EVERY chapter… even if it is just to tell me to post the next one.  
  
Okay now my babbling is done. (for this chapter at least)  
  
***I know I said 15 reviews, but I decided that 12 was close enough… besides I already have Chapter 5 done and I am anxious to put it up!!!!***  
  


  
**When Worlds Collide  
Chapter 4: The New Ally and the Unknown Variable**  
  
© sassy_lion May 2002  
  


  
Tara slipped slowly into the small alley and looked around, checking for intruders and followers. She looked back at where Zahir and Trilan were guarding the entrance. Giving a thumbs up and taking a deep breath, she headed to the doorway. _I hope this works... otherwise, the Resistance will be in trouble._  
  
She slowly opened the wooden door and found a pulse pistol aimed right at her head. "It's me. I see you agreed to my proposition." A smile tugged slightly at her lips as she watched him put away a pulse pistol he had obviously found at a weapons dealer's booth.  
  
"I didn't have much choice. For me, Aeryn is top priority. Why did you call me here like this? Why did you let me escape like that in the first place? Who are you really? Why..."  
  
"One question at a time." She took another deep breath and opened the door to the small room. Seeing Zahir and Trilan standing there, she motioned for one of them to come in. Tara looked directly at her captain and he nodded almost imperceptibly. Zahir stepped inside and she closed the door behind him. "My name is... Lieutenant Commander Risal L'San. Both myself and Captain Luca here work for the Resistance." She motioned for the disc she had given him earlier. "Did you look at it?"  
  
He nodded sharply, "Why do this to your own people?"  
  
Zahir spoke up now, "We don't believe in First Command doing what they are doing here in the Uncharted Territories. We want to diminish their presence in these areas so they cannot be brought into occupied territory under supposedly valid contact charters. There are over 30 planets in the Uncharted Territories already under Peacekeeper jurisdiction because of these so-called peace contact charters. We want to stop that."  
  
"Like Sykar," John said softly before he turned around, still flipping the disc between his nimble fingers.  
  
"Sykar was one of the first. By now, even independent as they claim, they are in what is now Peacekeeper territory." Tara said, remembering one of Torin's history lessons and wondering when John had visited Sykar. "We want to stop High Command's expansion into the Uncharted Territories. That's why we let you escape; to give you time to look at the disc and hopefully enough incentive to help us."  
  
"Assuming you get Aeryn back, just how am I supposed to help you?" John handed the disc back to Tara, crossed his arms and sat down on one of the small wooden chairs that were scattered around the room.  
  
"That will all be worked out later. Let's get back to Loki." She held out a pair of restraints. "This is the only way back aboard the Leviathan. Once there, given a few days, I can get you Officer's quarters, IF you decide to help us. If not, walk out the door right now and watch more planets become enslaved."  
  
Sighing deeply, he slipped his hands in and she tightened them to the point of near circulation deprivation. When she noticed the look on his face, she loosened them just enough for comfort. "You sure know how to blackmail a person."  
  
"It's one of my jobs." Tara smiled softly and secured the lock on the handcuffs. "Besides, it's fun," she teased.  
  
"I can guarantee that we will do everything to get Officer Sun back," Luca spoke behind her as she gave John a slight smile and nodded.  
  
"Come on. Once we get aboard the Leviathan, I can explain more." She patted the back of his hands gently and started to lead him out of the room. Opening the door, they started to walk to the two Prowlers sitting at the edge of the city that two members of the first squad had left behind on Zahir's request. "Officer Trilan is a resistance member, so you haven't anything to worry about until we get to Loki, all right? When we get aboard, stay silent and cooperate with the guards. I'll come down to your cell two arns after we dock. Do you understand?"  
  
"Yeah. One question. Why are you doing this? The real reason this time." He noticed the Prowlers on the other edge of the square, and his thoughts went to Aeryn, as always.  
  
"Same reason as you when you destroyed Scorpius' Command Carrier," was her cryptic reply as she helped him into the back of the Prowler and they took off for Loki.  
  
*-*-*-*-*  
  
John sat in his cell aboard the Leviathan with his head buried in his hands. "I knew this was a bad idea," he muttered, not hearing Tara walk up to the cell. It had been nearly two solar days since he had willingly let himself be captured, and no one had made any progress on finding Aeryn, or the ones responsible for her disappearance.  
  
As promised, Zahir and Tara were making all the progress possible and reporting it back to him.  
  
"What was a bad idea?" Tara said from the other side of the door. She tilted her head to the side in a questioning manner, "Getting recaptured?"  
  
"Yeah," he nodded.  
  
"Guards, dismissed."  
  
The two guards to her sides bowed slightly and left without another notice. "Pretending to be locked up until..."  
  
"You may never find Aeryn. I should have went looking for her myself," he said softly with a tinge of attitude in his voice.  
  
"By now, you'd be in the custody of the person who captured Aeryn." Tara leaned against the doorway.  
  
"At least I'd be with her, since..."  
  
"Since what, John?"  
  
For a tenth of a microt he had a look of surprise on his face, but then it disappeared under his stoic face. Tara had seen through it though. "Nothing. Aeryn was nervous because Moya took off without us. We were on the planet getting some supplies." he lied. He still didn't trust her enough to tell the truth that Moya had had Pilot make them leave on a transport pod, almost by force. "After we dropped the needed stuff on Moya, we came back down to see if we could barter other supplies we didn't desperately need, but wanted. Like oil for the pistols, some parts for our ships, stuff like that."  
  
Tara knew he was at least partially lying. She wasn't his sister for nothing. Nodding quietly, she tapped her comms badge. "Officer Trilan, our guest has decided to cooperate. Can you have him escorted out of his cell, tier eight, and to much more suited quarters?"  
  
"Yes. Lieutenant Commander. I will have that done immediately."  
  
John tilted his head to the side in confusion as she closed the comms channel. Tara looked back with an equally strange look. "I did promise to assign you better quarters as long as you cooperated with the Resistance, did I not?"  
  
John nodded, "Thank you."  
  
"Do not thank me yet. There is still the matter of finding Aeryn." She gave him a soft smile and nodded her head, "I promised I would do whatever necessary to find her."  
  
*-*-*-*-*  
  
Tara sighed as she slipped into her quarters exhausted. She could hear the shower running from the deeper in the room and she knew it was Zahir.  
  
Flopping down on the bed, she covered her eyes. She heard the shower stop and Zahir pad softly to the bed.  
  
"Is something wrong?" he asked quietly.  
  
She sat up from her position on the bed and kneeled softly at his side. Tara wrapped her arms around his waist and set her head on his shoulder. "I don't want to lie to John anymore."  
  
"Even though it's necessary?" He turned around and looked directly into her deep blue eyes. Zahir leaned forward and gave her a passionate kiss.  
  
She gave an equally passionate one back in return as she felt Zahir's arm go around her waist to pull her closer. After a microt, she could feel her jacket starting to be pushed off her shoulders until it fell in a heap on the bed next to her. Next started to come the black shirt she was wearing. He broke the kiss for a microt to pull it over her head, tossing it next to the discarded jacket as his lips soundly met hers once again. She could feel one of the straps of her bra starting to come off as she broke away from the passionate embrace for a few microts.  
  
"I never lied to him before in my life." Tara stared into his equally dark brown eyes. "What if he figures all this out and he figures out that I am his sister? He probably already did and he'll never trust me again."  
  
"Don't worry about that now. We must learn who has Aeryn Sun. She will be of value in this mission the Resistance has given us. High Command must not know about it..."  
  
"Captain!" Lieutenant Terga's voice called. "Priority one message..."  
  
"I'll be up in 100 microts," he interrupted. Zahir closed the channel and sighed deeply to Tara. He gave her another deep kiss and they both began pulling on clothes. Forty microts later, he and Tara were both off to Command.  
  
They entered to find themselves alone, even Lieutenant Terga had vacated Command. Tara stepped off to the side, out of view and Zahir initiated the comms channel open.  
  
The view screen lit up with Scorpius' face.  
  
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Hey, Nixar, I know this chapter is kind of short. It makes up for chapter three. Besides, I don't want to give away too much yet. I know there are questions cycling through your heads like: what is this all-important mission the Resistance has, and why do John and Aeryn play such a big part? I promise those questions will be answered soon. You all have to remember almost all my stories are off-the-wall-writings!  
  
I am going to have to POLITELY ask you non-responsible reviewers to review!!!! (Next time, I'll just write everything in Japanese, or Russian, or Italian if I don't get reviews. LOL. I'm kidding! Even though I could, I wouldn't want to do that to the responsible people!)   
  
QUOTE OF THE CHAPTER:  
  
Be forgiving. Be kind. Better angels. Her life. Her world. On her time...you will know. Aeryn is...with child.  
~ Noranti (AKA The Old Woman) to John "Dog With Two Bones"


	5. Nightmares Come True

**Title:** When Worlds Collide  
**Author:** sassy_lion   
**Summary:** Aeryn and John are having a wonderful weeken to themselves, when Aeryn goes missing and John finds a Peacekeeper plot that seems too unbelievable (somehow all my stories, as of late, get the PK treatment), only to get help from an unlikely source...  
**Spoilers:** A little more than 5 months after season 3. John and Aeryn are back together, as they should be!  
**Disclaimer:** Rockne owns the world. I just live and play in it, I really can't ask for more...  
**Archiving:** If you want it, take it. Send me a note.  
**Beta:** Iris Green, a trusty Hitachi computer, and Rusty- my piece of shit computer.  
**Feedback:** PLEASE. I need it! Compliments will be shined and placed in a display case. Flames will be used to blow new glass. (yes, I know how to do it too!)  
**Author's** **Notes: 1)** I am person who HATES to do story outlines ahead of time. It just throws me off and makes me lose my concentration. **2)** I am a nocturnal, soon-to-be 18-year-old, so if you find a mistake (regarding space-time or just normal time) it just means I had to be up for at least part of the day. **3)** You'll find a couple of anime references in a lot of my stories. No anime belongs to me, and in a way I want to strangle Lizzy for giving me excuses to watch more and more TV every week. Most of my references will be Gundam Wing, Cowboy Bebop, or Outlaw Star, but there others.... **Dogma reference: that doesn't belong to me either.** **4)** To everyone: I am working on about four stories at once, so please forgive me if I don't post as frequently as I usually have been. I hope you guys enjoy!  
**Shout-Outs:** The biggest thanks go to [always] **Lizzy** (aka pinky) for endlessly listening to me bitch and moan about EVERYTHING from my works, your works, your spelling problems (quit complaining, you know I luv ya!), being broke, and trying to borrow all your stuff, instead of getting my own copies. Why do you put up with me anyway? Thank you for also listening to me mention who I am going to kill...(you know its Holly :) PS: Thanks for the SM copies. Now I can tell everyone how bad American dubbed anime can be!) **Amy** for being a nit-pick and noticing EVERY spelling and grammar error in this vapid little excuse to get away from my loud and crowding family life. I don't think I could ever get this story up without the help, EXCEPTIONAL work for a person who is sick. Thank you, and I hope you feel better soon. And I guess I'll put you in here, **Jasmine**, only because you complained I don't give you any credit anywhere.  
**EXTRA NOTE:** I'll be switching between Risal and Tara for Tara's name. They are the same person! There is a whole other side to Tara that I have not mentioned in the previous chapters that will be coming up near the end of this chapter and some of the next. It may not make sense, but deal with it!

  
Okay now my babbling is done. (for this chapter at least)  
  
**When Worlds Collide  
Chapter 5: Nightmares Come True**  
  
© sassy_lion May 2002  
  


  
Tara felt sick to her stomach. Scorpius, the one she was the most scared of in the whole frelling galaxy, was talking to her Captain, her husband, and her love. Scorpius was also the cause of most of John's problems in the Uncharted Territories. He was one of the people she had to protect John from. Not just because it was her order from Resistance Admiral Tossa, but also because he was family.  
  
"Scorpius," Zahir spoke up, "I'm sure High Command would be pleased to see you alive." Tara could hear the slight sarcasm in the last statement, but it went unnoticed by Scorpius.  
  
"Captain Luca, how nice to see you again. I have requested that you be alone."  
  
"My second is here to make sure you do not overstep your boundaries and to keep the Pilot of this Leviathan from overhearing our conversation. She will remain silent and out of the way. That I can guarantee." Zahir's eyes flickered to hers for a moment making it clear that she was to do exactly as he said.  
  
"I can accept this term on one condition."  
  
"What is that?"  
  
"Hand over John Crichton."  
  
Tara shook her head vehemently, thankful she was off screen. _No frelling way, Scorpius. You can't have my brother._  
  
"John Crichton is to be captured under my jurisdiction, along with Aeryn Sun and Bialar Crais, if he is still alive. I will not relinquish my custody of him."  
  
"Captain Crais was pronounced dead when the hybrid starburst inside the hangar of my command carrier."  
  
"We have been discussing schematics with New Tech and it may be possible that the Leviathan hybrid escaped your command carrier alive due to tougher skinsteel shielding. Therefore, if that is possible, Bialar Crais could still be alive." Zahir repeated what Tara had told him, what she had been discussing with Fleet Captain Chatto earlier that morning. "You do not have the authority any more. If you have Aeryn Sun, I would suggest that you send her over on a transport pod, or I will take her by force if necessary."  
  
Scorpius took a sharp breath and continued. "I do have Officer Sun, but until you release John Crichton, I will not release her."  
  
"I demand you release her! Her capture is under my jurisdiction, not yours."  
  
"Unacceptable, Captain. As long as you have John Crichton, I will not release her."  
  
Zahir activated the comms, "All prowlers, prepare for assault."  
  
*-*-*-*-*  
  
Tara ran down the passageway of the Leviathan to her brother's private quarters. The ship rocked violently, sending Tara into the grating of the door. "Come on." she grabbed him by the wrist once he opened the door and started to pull him to the transport hangar. "We have to get off this ship. Scorpius has Aeryn and if we are going to rescue her, now would be the time."  
  
They entered the hangar bay and went to the nearest Prowler. Climbing in and pulling the top down, she took off 30 microts later and they joined the battle that had begun. One by one the ships from Scorpius' carrier, a mixture of standard Peacekeeper Prowlers and Marauders and a few ships that looked unfamiliar, began to fall back. It was then Tara saw her chance to board the ship. She handed John a pulse pistol, which he grateful placed in his holster, and a pair of restraints. Without question, he slipped into them, making sure they didn't lock and waited for the Prowler to dock. They landed safely aboard the ship as some of the damaged Peacekeeper ships from Scorpius' hangar started to come back for repairs and to refuel.  
  
Tara stopped on the deck and started to open the canopy of the Prowler, thankful she had made John wear a helmet, "Play along, and don't frell this up," she hissed as she pulled off her own helmet and climbed out of the cockpit. "Refuel," she ordered one of the techs, "I have a prisoner. Scorpius told me to immediately place him with the renegade Peacekeeper that was captured earlier."  
  
Playing right into their hands, one of the techs led her and John down a long corridor until the three of them stopped at a level four security door. "Thank you. Dismissed." The tech took off and left them alone. "Now for the fun part, rescuing Aeryn Sun, and trying to get off. A prowler doesn't exactly fit three people."  
  
"Let's just open the door, get Aeryn, then we'll worry about that." He shook off the restraints and tossed them to the ground.  
  
"I don't have a strategy yet!" Tara hissed as she checked the hall one last time for guards.  
  
"Make one up as you go. That's what I do and look at how many times it's saved my butt."  
  
"I swear you'll be the death of me," she softly whispered to herself and pressed the code for the door. "I'll guard the hall, you get Aeryn."  
  
It swung open softly and John looked inside. He saw Aeryn on the floor; unconscious, asleep, he wasn't sure, with one arm underneath her head and the other gently laying across her flat stomach. "Aeryn," he whispered, gently shaking her shoulder, "Aeryn wake up."  
  
Aeryn immediately opened her eyes and found John staring at her, "John?" she whispered. John knew they had started to torture her with heat, and he could see the damaging effects in her eyes.  
  
"Yeah, baby, it's me. Come on, we have to get off this piece of junk called Scorpy's ship." He lifted her into his arms, knowing her weakened state. He entered the hall and started to follow Risal back to the hangar, making sure that Aeryn was still safely in his arms.  
  
They stepped into the shadows of the hangar and John nearly fell over. The entire hangar was filled with officers.  
  
"I told you I should have thought of a strategy. There is no way we will ever get back to the prowler with all the officers around. They will report our presence the moment they see us."  
  
"Can we cause a distraction?"  
  
"That will be unnecessary," a familiar voice rang behind the three of them. "now that you are aboard this vessel, there will be no need to try and escape."  
  
John turned around, Aeryn still in his arms, and looked directly at where Scorpius stood on one of the higher rafters. "You son of a…"  
  
"And, I see you brought another one of your kind with you. How very convenient."  
  
John turned and glanced at where Risal was standing, noticing the guard that came up behind them while they had been distracted. He now realized why she had looked so familiar to him; John was not looking at Lieutenant Commander Risal L'San, but his own sister in disguise. He shot her an annoyed, yet angry, glance; but she never saw it. Her head was hung with a look of disappointment. "Tara…" he whispered softly.  
  
"Guards, secure them in velka nine containment. We will learn what knowledge the human woman possess after I inform Captain Luca what has transpired."  
  
"Yes, sir," one guard said as he pulled Tara around to face him and slapped a pair of handcuffs around her wrists.  
  
Aeryn was taken from John's arms and another pair of handcuffs were slapped on his wrists as well. The three of them were led down a corridor and pushed violently into a well-secured cell.  
  
John turned from his position on the floor just in time to see Tara thrown against the wall, rendering her unconscious.  
  
*-*-*-*-*  
  
Tara woke up a few arns later to find herself on top of a small, but well padded, cot. She tried to sit up, but found her hands were still in the Peacekeeper restraints.  
  
"You're finally awake I see," Aeryn Sun's voice came from the other side of the room as she lifted her head to look around.  
  
"Right now, I wish I was back on Loki. It wasn't supposed to get this far out of hand. It was supposed to be a simple rescue. Why does John always have to make things hard?" She rubbed her eyes and noticed that she was truly alone with Aeryn. "Where is John?"  
  
"Taken by Scorpius already. I suggest you continue to feign sleep. The guards were going to take you first, but you were still unconscious." She tilted her head to pillow it on her arm and stared questioningly at Tara. "John was adamant that you aren't who you seem to be. Is that true?"  
  
Tara nodded softly and yawned. "Whatever you do, don't let John believe that I am who he thinks I am, there will be a lot of problems if you let him. The less he knows the better off we will be. But I'm Tara...Tara Crichton. John's sister, but don't call me that. I'm better known as..."  
  
"Risal L'San," A voice called from beyond the door, when no answer came, the door opened and Tara, despite Aeryn's warnings, stood up, facing the guards, "come with us."  
  
Tara stifled another yawn and stepped carefully out of the door, as another set of guards came from down the hall dragging her nearly unconscious brother between them. She stopped herself from calling out his name and just stared nervously as she noticed the welts beginning to form around his wrists. _He's already been in the chair..._ she thought with apprehension.  
  
Zahir had always told Tara that the chair was the worst place a resistance leader could be. He had told her horror stories about things that had gone on, about how the chair ripped the memories from the subjected person no matter how hard they fought it.  
  
She was hauled into the captain's quarters and set down on the hard chair in front of a large slate-gray metal desk. Behind the desk was Scorpius himself. His feet propped up on the edge as he signaled for the guards to dismiss.  
  
"Lieutenant Commander Risal L'San," he spoke with a lilting air of knowledge as he brought his feet down and stood up, circling her like an animal. "Tell me who you really are and why you are on my ship helping John Crichton allow Aeryn Sun to escape."  
  
"My name is Risal L'San. I am Lieutenant Commander aboard..."  
  
"I know of your background in Peacekeeper logs, but you are lying. You're energy signature is non-Sebacean, nearly identical to Crichton's. Now once again, tell me who you are, the truth this time, or I will allow you to be placed in the Aurora Chair and extract the information as I have him."  
  
"Your chair won't get anything out of me," she spat defiantly. "Besides, I have two of the best captains in the fleet looking out for me."  
  
"True, Captain Chatto and Captain Luca will be greatly disappointed if I do not return you alive, but I also know that Captain Luca will not allow any fire upon this ship as long as you and the other fugitives are aboard."  
  
"Says who?" she managed to slip her hand into her pocket at that moment and pressed the activation point on a small chip that Zahir had given her before she had left Command earlier in the day. It hummed softly between her fingertips for a few microts before she let it dropped back into her pocket. Pulling her hand out, Tara lifted her head a little more and met Scorpius' eyes.  
  
A few microts later, the ship began to shudder. "I am not bluffing, if he has to, I know that Captain Luca will destroy this ship, and kill each and everyone of us in the process." Her blue eyes flashed defiantly at him. "Make no mistake Scorpius, I know that you are subverting High Commands' decisions and when the Council finds out you are still alive, you will suffer a worse fate than the three of us."  
  
"Guards," he called as the door opened. He motioned for the two at the door to take Tara. "Take Lieutenant Commander L'San to the Aurora Chair."  
  
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*- *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-  
  
That's all for this chapter, Nixar! That was a long chapter for me! I hope you liked it because the next chapter will be even better (so I am told by one of my betas).  
  
REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW!


	6. The Secret Unveiled

**Title:** When Worlds Collide  
**Author:** sassy_lion  
**Summary:** Aeryn and John are having a wonderful weeken to themselves, when Aeryn goes missing and John finds a Peacekeeper plot that seems too unbelievable (somehow all my stories, as of late, get the PK treatment), only to get help from an unlikely source...  
**Spoilers:** A little more than 5 months after season 3. John and Aeryn are back together, as they should be!  
**Disclaimer:** Rockne owns the world. I just live and play in it, I really can't ask for more...  
**Archiving:** If you want it, take it. Send me a note.  
**Beta:** Iris Green, a trusty Hitachi computer, and Rusty- my piece of shit computer.  
**Feedback:** PLEASE. I need it! Compliments will be shined and placed in a display case. Flames will be used to blow new glass. (yes, I know how to do it too!)  
**Author's Notes: 1)** I am person who HATES to do story outlines ahead of time. It just throws me off and makes me lose my concentration. **2)** I am a nocturnal 18-year-old, so if you find a mistake (regarding space-time or just normal time) it just means I had to be up for at least part of the day. **3)** You'll find a couple of anime references in a lot of my stories. No anime belongs to me, and in a way I want to strangle Lizzy for giving me excuses to watch more and more TV every week. Most of my references will be Gundam Wing, Cowboy Bebop, or Outlaw Star, but there others.... **Dogma reference: that doesn't belong to me either.** **4)** To everyone: I am working on about four stories at once, so please forgive me if I don't post as frequently as I usually have been. I hope you guys enjoy!  
**Shout-Outs:** The biggest thanks go to [always] **Lizzy** (aka pinky) for endlessly listening to me bitch and moan about EVERYTHING from my works, your works, your spelling problems (quit complaining, you know I luv ya!), being broke, and trying to borrow all your stuff, instead of getting my own copies. Why do you put up with me anyway? **Amy** for being a nit-pick and noticing EVERY spelling and grammar error in this vapid little excuse to get away from my loud and crowding family life. I don't think I could ever get this story up without the help, EXCEPTIONAL work. Thank you, and I hope you feel better soon. **Maren**, for no other reason than she is as crazy as me (and I hope she is proud of it!) **Vaidah** and **Dawn**

**EXTRA NOTE:** I'll be switching between Risal and Tara for Tara's name. They are the same person! There is a whole other side to Tara that I have not mentioned in the previous chapters. That will be coming up near the end of this chapter and some of the next. It may not make sense, but deal with it!

  
Okay now my babbling is done. (for this chapter at least)

  
  
****

**When Worlds Collide**  
**Chapter 6: The Secret Unveiled**

Tara screamed once again, still not believing the amount of pain circulating through her head at the moment. 

It had been two, maybe three arns since Scorpius had ordered his guards to place her in the Aurora Chair. 

So far, all of what Zahir had told was true, the more resistance, the more pain, as Scorpius systematically raped her mind of all the memories she possessed, including all her memories of Earth, Centinnal, her life after Centinnal, and more. 

The breaks had come few and far between as Scorpius searched her mind for the answers to questions he wanted to know. She sobbingly told him the truth about her Peacekeeper ruse, and all the secrets she had held on to since she had infiltrated the command carrier to save John. 

One of the only secrets she held now was the Resistance. He would never break her of that one, even if he continued to search her mind as heavily as he had been. Twelve million resistance leaders, soldiers, and supporters would all be found and executed if she gave that information to him, and her work since she left Centinnal would be wasted. 

"That's enough for now. Her brain patterns show that she would not be able to endure much longer if this level were kept up," Niem's voice came from behind Tara somewhere. 

Tara could sense that two guards were coming up to the platform, but because of the amount of pain that was running through her, she couldn't feel her limbs. Apparently, they took off the straps quickly because the next thing she knew was being pulled up from the sitting position. She flexed her wrists painfully, reveling in the self-inflicted pain for a brief microt before Tara felt herself being pulled into unconsciousness. She fought to keep herself awake long enough to make sure the guards wouldn't do anything to her. 

"Agreed. Guards take... Lieutenant L'San back to her cell," was the last thing she heard as Scorpius motioned for the guards to take her as she felt herself slip into blessed unconsciousness. 

*-*-*-*-* 

Aeryn sat on the floor of the cold metal cell with John's head buried underneath her neck as she gently stroked the back of his neck, allowing him to be relaxed and stay asleep. John had fallen into a deep sleep an arn earlier, thankful to be back in physical contact with Aeryn as she checked the welts that had begun to form on his wrists from the chair's bindings. 

She sat there thinking of how all of this had gotten started when the door creaked open. Two guards stepped in and unceremoniously dropped Tara on the ground. She heard a small moan from Tara as they left and Aeryn went back to watching John's sleeping form, averting her eyes to Tara's unconscious one every few minutes. 

She felt the baby's small form move as it told her it was hungry. She was thankful she hadn't really begun to show yet. She figured, if meticulous enough, she could hide the fact until about the tenth monen. She knew the sentence she would receive if it were learned the baby was not fully Sebacean. It would have no life outside of her womb. 

John moaned softly and picked his head from under Aeryn's chin. "Hey, baby." He leaned up slightly and kissed her soundly on the lips. 

"I see you are feeling better then," she smirked as he pulled out of her lap and rested next to her on the floor. 

He noticed Tara's unconscious form on the floor and wondered for a brief moment what had happened to her before returning his attention to Aeryn. 

"Are you okay? The heat got you a little earlier." 

"I'm fine; a little dizzy, but I'm all right. You were unconscious for about three arns yourself. Risal said something about the Aurora Chair before Scorpius's guards took her away. She was brought back no more than 100 microts before you woke up." 

"She's not who she seems to be," John repeated his earlier tirade as a shiver passed through him when she mentioned the chair. 

Aeryn sighed as she took turn and rested her head on his shoulder. _I hate lying to him, but she said the less he knew the better... I have a strange sense that I can trust her not to hurt any of us._ Her thoughts trailed off as she spoke, "She is exactly who she seems to me. John, I spent a quarter arn talking to her." 

"I still don't believe that," he whispered as the door squeaked open and a guard stepped in, mumbling about feeding traitors and disgusting prisoners before he dropped three trays in the center of the room and quickly stalked back out, slamming the door behind him. 

John silently moved to the center of the room and grabbed two of the trays. Bringing them back to where he previously sat, he held out the tray to her. "Eat something, you'll feel better." He smirked slightly and Aeryn immediately knew he was talking about her and the baby, but didn't want the monitors to know their secret, let alone the rest of the ship. 

She grudgingly nodded her thanks and took a few bites of the food cube he had held out to her. "When do you think Risal will wake up?" 

John shrugged and popped a food cube into his mouth as he glanced at the still unconscious form of the so-called Risal L'San, wondering about anything and everything that came to mind. 

*-*-*-*-* 

"What?" Zahir yelled as he paced back and forth in Command on Loki, "it's -- she can't be. I've never known Risal to be anything but a loyal Peacekeeper soldier." _Not to mention, a wonderful wife and recreating partner._

He was thankful that last statement was made out of Scorpius's line of vision aboard the Leviathan; otherwise Scorpius would definitely know he was lying through his teeth. Once again, he was being interrogated by Scorpius. And it wasn't like he could just have Loki starburst away, Tara, her brother and Officer Sun were aboard the other ship. 

His other problem was that Captain Chatto had become more involved and was also being heavily interrogated by Scorpius and his crew also. He had communicated with Chatto many times over the last few solar days about mounting a rescue mission for the three. 

It took many days, but Zahir finally managed to stop Scorpius from initiating any more interrogations. And yet he was no where near close to getting his wife and the other two he needed desperately to carry out the mission the Resistance had given him and Tara. 

Zahir rubbed his face in his hands, sighing softly as he climbed into the empty bed, half expecting Tara to walk in any moment and pounce on him ready for sex. But she didn't. She wasn't there anymore. She was being tortured for information on Scorpius's ship. 

He shuddered slightly at the thought and rolled over to Tara's favorite side of the bed. He grabbed her pillow and buried his face in it, inhaling deeply to catch her unique scent. He smiled at the smell of haifa flowers and kaa'ya nectar from her favorite soap with the underlying light musky smell that her body naturally produced. Zahir fell asleep a few moments later, hoping to make it one full night of sleep, as he thought of a perfect plan to get them out. 

He woke up six arns later, feeling better than he had since Tara had been captured. He stepped on to Command and activated the comms. "Captain Chatto, I could use your help." 

*-*-*-*-* 

Tara was in the chair again. 

"Tell me all you know about this Resistance movement. I caught a fleeting glimpse of it last time I placed you in here. Tell me more," Scorpius commanded as Niem raised the chair's extraction levels. 

Everything exploded as Tara's last barrier broke, revealing all the information she had been given about the Resistance. _I'm so sorry I let everyone down. Zahir, I'm so sorry, _her thoughts sobbed as she screamed one last time before passing out; her last thought being about how long it had actually taken to pry the information from her now coveted mind. 

As she fell into the cell, John was picked up and brought out. She knew she wouldn't be able to handle many more sessions in that frelling chair if Scorpius knew all the information was useless without her. 

She hoped that Zahir and Captain Chatto would soon come up with a plan to save the lot of them, but she didn't know how anymore. _At least there is one secret he doesn't know about. My psionic ability, it has been so well hidden since I left Centinnal that I almost completely forgot about it. But would it still work after three cycles of disuse? It might be worth a try in the future, but for now, I know I should keep it hidden, but..._

She turned on her side and looked at where Aeryn was quietly asleep on the floor. She closed her eyes and concentrated intensely on the sleeping form. She took a deep breath and slipped quietly into her mind, slightly pleased that her ability was still as strong as ever. 

The first thing on Aeryn's mind, as Tara had suspected, was John's health. She watched as Aeryn's dream shifted from one dangerous situation to another. Draks. Sheyangs. A Flax. Three different Johns. John as a statue. The Gammak Base. The Shadow Depository. An Ice Planet. The commerce station near the twin suns of Quell. An image of John playing paper rock scissors with himself. A Budong. Dam-Ba-Da. John dying of radiation poisoning aboard the hybrid Leviathan. John alive on Moya. Scorpius's command carrier. 

Tara watched in curiosity as all these events were played in real time through Aeryn's mind. She could sense all the emotions that ran rampant inside Aeryn's head at the times of the incidents and the overwhelming fear for the current one. Tara now knew for certain that she could trust in Aeryn to help. 

She pulled out of Aeryn's mind and sighed deeply, opening her eyes and looking directly at the still sleeping Aeryn. Tara smiled slightly, as Aeryn had never sensed another presence in her mind. 

About an arn later John was promptly thrown back into the shared cell as Tara and Aeryn talked about each other. Throughout the whole base it was already known that two humans had been captured, so there was no use hiding it from the monitors. 

"John," Aeryn cried softly as he lifted his head and gave her a slight grin, "are you all right?" 

"Yeah, got one hell of a huge headache, but I'm okay for now. How are things on the flip side?" 

"Not much better." Tara replied as she closed on her brother's position. "I don't know how to reach Captain Luca or Captain Chatto," she whispered, "they would come in an instant if they knew exactly where we were on the ship. I doubt they have had much luck finding us this far." Tara rubbed the side of her neck and stared at the door expectantly, "Getting out is not the immediate problem. Scorpius has the information on the Resistance." 

Two sets of eyes looked at her in horror as she turned away from them and set her head in her hands, silently sobbing. 

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-

See, Nixar, isn't this a wonderful chapter? Who am I kidding? I would hope for some comments soon!!!!!!!


	7. Listen to Reason

**Title:** When Worlds Collide  
**Author:** sassy_lion  
**Summary:** Aeryn and John are having a wonderful weeken to themselves, when Aeryn goes missing and John finds a Peacekeeper plot that seems too unbelievable (somehow all my stories, as of late, get the PK treatment), only to get help from an unlikely source...  
**Spoilers:** A little more than 5 months after season 3. John and Aeryn are back together, as they should be!  
**Disclaimer:** Rockne owns the world. I just live and play in it, I really can't ask for more...  
**Archiving:** If you want it, take it. Send me a note.  
**Beta:** Iris Green, a trusty Hitachi computer, and Rusty- my piece of shit computer.  
**Feedback:** PLEASE. I need it! Compliments will be shined and placed in a display case. Flames will be used to blow new glass. (yes, I know how to do it too!)  
**Author's Notes: 1)** I am person who HATES to do story outlines ahead of time. It just throws me off and makes me lose my concentration. **2)** I am a nocturnal 18-year-old, so if you find a mistake (regarding space-time or just normal time) it just means I had to be up for at least part of the day. **3)** You'll find a couple of anime references in a lot of my stories. No anime belongs to me, and in a way I want to strangle Lizzy for giving me excuses to watch more and more TV every week. Most of my references will be Gundam Wing, Cowboy Bebop, or Outlaw Star, but there others.... **Dogma reference: that doesn't belong to me either.** **4)** To everyone: I am working on about four stories at once, so please forgive me if I don't post as frequently as I usually have been. I hope you guys enjoy!  
**Shout-Outs:** The biggest thanks go to [always] **Lizzy** (aka pinky) for endlessly listening to me bitch and moan about EVERYTHING from my works, your works, your spelling problems (quit complaining, you know I luv ya!), being broke, and trying to borrow all your stuff, instead of getting my own copies. Why do you put up with me anyway? **Amy** for being a nit-pick and noticing EVERY spelling and grammar error in this vapid little excuse to get away from my loud and crowding family life. I don't think I could ever get this story up without the help, EXCEPTIONAL work. Thank you, and I hope you feel better soon. **Maren**, for no other reason than she is as crazy as me (and I hope she is proud of it!) **Vaidah** and **Dawn**

**EXTRA NOTE:** I haven't written on this story in so so long, so forgive me if there are some errors… Unbetaed at the moment. Forgive the lines above and below…

**When Worlds Collide**

**Chapter 7: Listen to Reason**

Zahir paced the Command center aboard Loki nervously. It had been another solar day following Scorpius's command ship which he had learned was one of the new carriers High Command had developed called a Lancer. It's already been a weeken or more since Tara and the others were captured...

Captain Chatto had taken the initiative and separated the two crews once he had learned of the movement against First Command. One crew was aboard the command carrier still in the dark about the Resistance, except for a few loyal officers while all of the supporters had been transferred to Loki.

"So what will we do, Captain?" Bishall Trilan asked as he eased into Command carrying two cups of Tarska tea and a worried look on his face. Since he had entered the Resistance a little more than a monen earlier, he had become close to the human woman and he felt a sort of sadness at not having her around to cheer him and Zahir up when things weren't looking so good.

"At the moment, continue to follow. Since both our ships are still out of sensor range of the Lancer. I'm a little surprised High Command's new ship doesn't have better sensors. We will wait until the Lancer stops and we will then mount a rescue mission. Brantam is in agreement now that he knows the stakes."

"Are you sure he won't betray the Resistance?" Bishall handed a mug to Zahir and sat down at the strategy table. He was thankful that most of the small crew was in the middle of the sleep cycle and he had a chance to speak to Zahir alone.

"He knows what First Command would give for this information, but he feels some sort of obligation to us. I don't know why or how, but I know he won't betray us."

"Captain Luca," Pilot's voice rang out through Command rich with a sort of excitement, "I have received word from another Leviathan that the... Lancer has stopped at a nearby commerce planet."

"Does the Leviathan have a name, Pilot?"

"Loki informs me that it is... Moya." her voice sounded pleased at the announcement.

Zahir smiled and nodded back. "How far are we from the planet?"

"About 27 arns."

"Once the shifts start, announce to all crew members the information." Zahir nodded to Pilot and trudged off to his quarters.

*-*-*-*-*

John had been in the chair once again. Tara could hear the screams come from down the hall as her brother was tortured once again for the wormhole information inside his head. In a strange grief-induced kind of way, Tara was glad that she was done being in that chair. Scorpius had purged all the memories from her mind and left her alone the last three solar days. She knew they were trying to get John to admit about the Resistance, but Tara had told him nothing, so it was a useless effort that was causing more harm than good.

Even Aeryn had been exposed to the chair once, but her memories yielded no results other than a way to blackmail John for that damned information through the baby she was carrying.

As of the last solar day, Tara let certain information slip to John about what had happened all those years he had been away from Earth, when he had finally asked.

He asked everything from sports to politics and she had given him fully truthful answers. She also told him other stuff that had happened since he had left from the September 11 attacks so many years ago that changed America for a whole, World War III, to the building of the space gates and the colonies that had been formed to how she had had a life on Centinnal. 

She didn't care anymore that people on board the ship knew what her life had been like before space, her top priority had become finding a way to stop Scorpius from using the Resistance information against them.

So when an unconscious John was thrown back into the small cell by the same annoying guard as before, Tara immediately crawled over to her brother and tried to wake him up. "John," she shook him softly, "wake up. Come on wake up." A moment later, she realized that the last session had completely drained him of all his energy. "Oh, frell." she muttered as she pulled off the coat she had refused to take off since day one.

Aeryn noticed the bonding tattoo poking out of the bottom of her short-sleeve shirt as Tara wrapped the jacket into a ball and set it under John's head. "What is it?" she asked Tara softly.

"He's completely drained. He didn't even respond when I shook him, and he has every other time I tried."

"What can we do?" 

"Nothing at the moment. If he doesn't wake up in the next few arns, we'll have to figure out some way to get him conscious again." Tara sighed and fell back to the wall, her head pillowed by her arms.

*-*-*-*-*

"Are you sure about this, Captain?" Trillan asked as he stepped into Command and looked directly at his captain. 

"Not completely, but it is one of the only things I can think of trying." Zahir moved from one console to another, trying to keep his attention off of the impending confrontation. "Besides, we know that those on Moya will help in any way possible." He turned to the clamshell and nodded to Pilot.

The screen changed from the endless stars to the face of an angry Luxan. "Peacekeepers!" he shouted.

"No, no, no, Luxan, not exactly. We are asking you and your crew for help rescuing one of our crew...."

"We will not help Peacekeepers."

"... and recover two of your own in the process, named John Crichton and Aeryn Sun." Zahir finished, ignoring the interruption.

The Luxan's eyes softened slightly at the mentioning of John and Aeryn. Zahir heard two small gasps in the background, assuming others were there on Command,  and D'Argo spoke up once again, "We are listening."

Chatto nodded and began to tell the crew of Moya his plan and how they would be involved. Chiana and Jool had surfaced from the edges of the screen during the explanation and nodded as he once again asked for the help.

Zahir smiled as the screen went blank after two arns of productive communication. Tara and the others will be so surprised. he thought as he exited his own Command deck and headed for his and Tara's quarters.


End file.
